adding venturi footwell drains

I have a hammerhead spec double that I paddle with my wife. We hope to do some racing in it this summer and the only thing I don't quite like about the ski is that neither footwell has venturi drains. I was wondering if anyone had experience in adding these? Is this a reasonable thought/project and how would you rate the diffaculty of it.
Am I barking up the wrong tree? Why don't they put these in lifeguard spec skis? Thanks in advance for any replies.
Ed Gifford
Toms River, NJ USA

I'm sure that you could do it.

The only potential problem would be if the foot wells are not epoxied to the hull of the boat as they are in a racing ski.

This is important because other wise it will flex around the venturi "pipe" and crack very quickly!

Try to get the RED7 bullet scupper thingies - they work ridiculously quickly and the new ones are plastic so very durable.

I have also wondered why they don't put venturis in spec skis. I think that with the double footwells there was very little water that stayed in there. I read somewhere that the RED7 spec ski with single footwell has venturis - can anyone confirm? Also wouldn't be surprised if there was a regulation against it in lifesaving?

Drainers were only allowed in lifesaving spec skis as of the beginning of last year.

Yes the double footwells don't hold a lot of water, but it's still very annoying having wet and colder feet compared to hearing a pair of venturies gurgling away.

I've had venturies in my Australian spec ski since 2005. They were installed by the manufacturer when it was made, and I know he is not prepared to retrofit them, even to an equivalent ski. The reason is that he uses a layer of silicon (I think) between the footwells and the hull, and then drills through the lot. Obviously you cant add the silicone retrospectively, so they would probably leak water into the hull.

Much better to leave alone I think, and go with the traditional approach of stamping your feet in the footwells to eject some of the water (at least that's what I used to do). I reckon you could devise a piece of flexible plastic to enhance this, almost like a foot-operated pump.

A couple of years ago I added some homemade red7 style bullets and it's made a big difference, probably drains about twice as fast. I'm surprised red7 aren't selling them as accessories to fit any ski...or perhaps they are?

As far as I know they are available as a kit to put into other ski's.

I would still be a bit nervous to do it myself - once the drains start leaking it is an absolute mission to fix them properly...

Thank you Andrew, Natalie and Birchy for your help and replies. I think I may look into purchashing a kit if one is available but for now I think I will leave it alone and put up with the wet, clamy feet.This is only an issue in the colder weather. I was hoping to get the water to drain during racing conditions but don't think its worth taking the risk. That seems to be the better choice than taking a perfectly fine double that we otherwise enjoy paddling and turning it into a submarine. Thanks again to all of you.
Edward Gifford
Toms River, NJ USA

I mess around with fibreglass quite a bit and must caution that this is a tricky job which could result in a leaky ski if you don't get it right. Given the age of the ski and the fact that double wells don't hold a lot of water I would suggest that you rather buy a pair of neoprene surfer booties - Great foot protection while getting to and from the water and very effective in cold water.

Hi Edward,

Email me This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call and I will walk you through the whole process.
Its not hard to do once you know how.

The whole process does not take much time or cost a bunch.

aloha,
pog